Hong Kong shop prices could slump by up to 20 per cent as city’s measures to control coronavirus outbreak hit retailers, restaurants
- Owners have cut prices by 5 to 10 per cent on average since the outbreak of the Omicron coronavirus strain, said Edwin Lee of Bridgeway Prime Shop Fund
- Hong Kong Retail Management Association expects retail sales to remain flat in the first half due to social-distancing measures to control outbreak
The prices of Hong Kong’s street-level shops could slump by as much as 20 per cent if the coronavirus outbreak persists throughout the year, with retail and catering operators most at risk, according to market observers.
Owners have cut prices by 5 to 10 per cent on average since the outbreak of the Omicron coronavirus strain, said Edwin Lee, founder and CEO of Bridgeway Prime Shop Fund Management.
“If the pandemic does not fade and persists for [a few] months, the shop market will drop 5 to 10 per cent,” said Lee. “If it does not fade for the whole year, it will drop 15 to 20 per cent.”
He added the pandemic will throw up some good bargains.
01:53
Hong Kong reports 140 new human cases of Covid-19 and one from a surrendered hamster
Retail sales in 2021 rose 8.1 per cent year on year, but were still 30 per cent lower compared with 2018, before the double whammy of social unrest and coronavirus outbreak.
However, the outlook does not look too bright. After the government tightened social distancing measures on January 7, sales slumped by as much as half for some retailers from a week earlier, according to the Hong Kong Retail Management Association, which expects retail sales to remain flat in the first half of the year.